Quebec Trip

April 2, 2022 In Travel

When did we go….

Why did we go…

it was a belated (2 years after the fact) 30^th birthday trip for our daughter Stephanie, and it allowed her to visit a friend in Montreal as well as me to see one of my childhood pals and my cousin

How did we get there…

3.5 hour flight to Toronto and then another 1.5 hours to Quebec City
3.5 hour train ride from Quebec City to Montreal (nice way to travel including a yummy lunch)
4.5 hour direct return flight from Montreal to Calgary

Where did we stay…

Quebec City:

Fairmont Le Chateau Frontenac
we got lucky as they screwed up our initial two-bedroom upgrade and ended up giving us a palatial suite on the 15^th floor
130-year-old hotel (opened in 1893) overlooking the St. Lawrence River, the city, and the Plains of Abraham
excellent service throughout the hotel

Montreal:

Lofts du Vieux-Port
located in the Old Port area
we were in a separate building with 50 stairs that we had to carry our luggage up and helped us burn off some of the daily calories we consumed
huge loft with two bedrooms
funky brick and stone walls

Where did we eat…

Quebec City:

Place Dufferin Restaurant (buffet breakfast every morning, Chateau Frontenac, views of the St. Lawrence Seaway, fun waiter Jean Mathieu that I chatted about Les Habitants and Nordiques hockey with, tasty buffet)

Bistro Sous le Fort (dinner, Old Port area, small quaint restaurant in a house built in 1650, excellent food)

Aux Ancieans Canadien (lunch, oldest house in Quebec – built in 1675, traditional Quebec cuisine, excellent food, and service)
Ophelia (dinner, sat in a geodesic dome, decent food, tried to overcharge us ‘twice’ on our bill which left a sour taste in our mouth)
Sapristi (lunch, below the Chateau Frontenac, nicely appointed Italian eatery)
Portofino (dinner, very challenging to get any of the server’s attention for more than a few seconds at a time, ‘chain like’ atmosphere)
SAM bistro (lunch, Fairmont Hotel, beautifully appointed lounge with great views of the St. Lawrence River, guinea fowl was one of my best meals of the trip)
Chez Boulay Bistro Boreal (dinner, nice ambiance, excellent service, good food)

Montreal:

Milos (dinner, great food, fun ambiance of interesting people and cool décor, excellent service, our waiter has served Rafael Nadal, Robert De Niro, and Al Pacino)
Pinchette (breakfast, decent chow, and ambiance)
Wensten & Gavino’s (lunch, on Crescent Street, huge place, average ambiance, decent food)
Fish Bone (dinner, Asian styled food, excellent chow, very energetic server)
Swartz’s (lunch, historic dinner that opened in 1928, fun vibe, veteran waiter who ‘knew the drill’, Montreal smoked meat is the specialty)
Surcouf (dinner, Sainte-Anne de-Bellevue, historic house, quality chow, fun time with long time friends Al and MC)
Vieux-Port Steakhouse (lunch, nice ambiance, excellent lamb dish)
Gibby’s (dinner, decent ambiance in a historic building, bit on the pricey side for similar quality and service as other places)

What did we do…

Quebec City:

walked around Old Town and the Old Port area checking out the shops, galleries, and historical buildings
visited with my good friend An’s cousins at their boutique Hotel Manoir de la L’Esplanade
took the ferry over to Levis to check out the views on both sides of the seaway
walked a number of neighborhoods around the old town and checked out some of the historical architecture that permeates this part of the city
got a good workout jogging up and down the 115 stairs three times from the hotel down to the Old Port area
hung at the Fairmont pool enjoying the hot tub, some coffee from 1884 café, and finishing my book (Gridiron Genius)
toured around Ile d’Orleans (guide Suzanne did not have the best vibe, visited Cassis Mona & Filles black currant farm, Vignoble Isle de Bacchus fruit winery, Relaix du Pins maple syrup factory, and Choclaterie chocolate store along with driving through a few of the small towns of historic houses)
visited the Montmorency Falls (30 meters larger than Niagara Falls but the blustery day and short time window resulted in a less than optimal viewing day)
enjoyed a live musician at Pub St-Alexandre

Montreal:

Steph visited her friend Kaylee who is a part-time musician
two visits to one of my favorite clothing stores (Modo Milano)
walked around the downtown shopping area on Rue Saint-Catherine (all varieties of shopping for any budget)
visited the Botanical Gardens with my cousin Eleanor (amazing diversity of plants)
walked Saint Laurent street and the surrounding area to check out the local housing vibe and the many murals in the area
my childhood buddy Big Al Lovell and his wife MC took us on a drive along the south shore of the Island to view the amazing historic buildings and properties along this route
walked around the McGill campus, scoping out the historic buildings
check out the shops and galleries in Old Montreal
checked out the La Grande Roue de Montreal (Canada’s tallest Ferris wheel) and the Montreal Clock Tower (replica of London’s Big Ben) which are both in the Old Port area

Background:

Quebec City:

sits on the St. Lawrence River
founded by Samuel de Champlain in 1608
the old fortified city is designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site
known for it’s fortified core with its stone buildings and narrow streets
the only city north of Mexico whose fortified walls still exist
Algonquian people had originally named the area Kebec, an Algonquin word meaning ‘where the river narrows’ because the St. Lawrence River narrows proximate to the promontory of Quebec and its Cape Diamant
one of the oldest European cities in North America
metropolitan population of 800,000

Montreal:

it’s set on an island in the Saint Lawrence River and named after Mt. Royal, the triple-peaked hill at its heart
its boroughs, many of which were once independent cities, include neighborhoods ranging from cobblestoned, French colonial Vieux-Montréal – with the Gothic Revival Notre-Dame Basilica at its center – to bohemian Plateau
2^nd most populated city in Canada with a metropolitan population of 4.3M

What did we not do that is on the agenda for next time:

Quebec City:

Montreal:

check out some of the museums
come back in the summer when there are more outdoor festivals and other summer activities

Final thoughts:

the weather was cool and even downright cold at time (-20C one day in Montreal), but we layered up and survived the final throes of winter
the French language was no issue in Quebec City as almost everyone we encountered was bilingual and everyone was super friendly

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